Abstract
Tungsten fiber-reinforced Zr41.25Ti13.75Cu12.5Ni10Be22.5 amorphous matrix composites (hereinafter referred to as Wf/Zr-based amorphous matrix composites) are considered as a potential new generation of projectile material, while the penetration behavior of Wf/Zr-based amorphous matrix composites is not fully clear yet. In order to better understand the penetration behavior of this composite material and study its armor-piercing performance, a ballistic experiment was performed and the hardness and microstructure around the crater of a target material were studied. A ballistic experiment was performed with a projectile of Wf/Zr-based amorphous matrix composite and a target of 4043 steel. After the ballistic experiment, the target was cut through the crater using a wire cutting machine into a sample with size 150 mm × 40 mm × 20 mm, which was later polished by different types of sandpaper. The micro-hardness was analyzed in a micro-hardness tester, and the microstructure was observed by SEM. According to this study, three layers were identified in the direction lateral to the crater, consisting of a martensite layer, a deformation strengthening layer, and the original structure layer. Moreover, the martensite layer initially thickened and then thinned in the direction longitudinal to the crater.
Highlights
There is an urgent need to improve the armor-piercing performance of projectiles since the armor-piercing resistance of target materials has increased in recent years [1,2]
The target around the test points were observed by SEM, and the microstructure of the target is presented in Figure 4, where the hardness value was marked next to the test point, and the arrow represents the penetration direction
In order to understand the reasons for the above phenomenon, an image of the microstructure at a higher magnification is shown in Figure 5, in which (a) is the typical microstructure image of high hardness target, (b) is the typical microstructure image of the middle hardness target, (c) is the typical microstructure image of the low hardness target, (d) is the microstructure image of the adiabatic shear band, and (e) is an enlarged view of (a)
Summary
There is an urgent need to improve the armor-piercing performance of projectiles since the armor-piercing resistance of target materials has increased in recent years [1,2]. Projectile materials are used to make projectile in penetrator, and the armor-piercing performance of the penetrator is mainly determined by the kind of projectile material. While during the penetration of a tungsten alloy projectile, the alloy grains can be bent and extremely deformed opposite to penetration direction [4], causing the volume in front of the projectile to be larger than that in the back, and this phenomenon, called mushroom head, decreases the armor-piercing performance of the projectile. Because of the heavy density of uranium, depleted uranium alloy can penetrate armor steel . As shear bands which are 45◦ with the penetration direction are formed in penetration of depleted uranium alloy, the volume in front of the projectile is smaller than that in the back, and this phenomenon called self-sharping character increases the armor-piercing performance of the projectile. The armor-piercing property of depleted uranium is better than that of tungsten alloy, while the depleted uranium alloy is Materials 2020, 13, 5523; doi:10.3390/ma13235523 www.mdpi.com/journal/materials
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